Staggering Hope

“And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.” Genesis 15:5,6

 

“And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.” Genesis 13:16

God made these promises to Abraham.

Abraham, “Who hope against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.” (Romans 5:1

Against - preposition…like against a wall

Hope - to anticipate, usually with pleasure (blueletterbible.org)

Believed - conviction of the truth (blueletterbible.org)

Abraham hoped. He was strongly persuaded by hope. The hope given by God so compelled Abraham to believe…hope against hope.

God’s promise was huge!

- the Father of many Nations

- as numerous as the stars in the heavens

- also as numerous as the dust of the earth

As verse 19 in Romans 4 points out, Abraham’s own body was considered dead, and let’s not forget the deadness of Sarah’s womb. Yet, “being not weak in faith, he considered not” these things.

Staggering as these hindrances to God’s promises may be, Abraham staggered not.

Stagger - to withdraw from one, desert; to separate one’s self in a hostile spirit, to oppose, strive with dispute, contend; to be at variance with one’s self, hesitate, doubt (blueletterbible.org)

Abraham did not desert God, become hostile, argue, become frustrated, hesitate, or doubt.

How? I do not know. This I do know…I do this…when facing huge obstacles in light of God’s promises, I find that I am more prone to hesitation, doubt, dismay, to draw back, give up, run! Why? I would venture to say, because my faith is weak. I’m not hoping against hope. I need to take a lesson from Father Abraham here…learn from him.

Where does staggering come from? Romans 4:20 tells us, unbelief, “He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in the faith giving glory to God.”

Unbelief

Take a look at unbelief. See how it hinders. May we, like Abraham, be compelled by hope to believe.

In Matthew 17, the disciples come to Jesus asking why they could not cure a child. Jesus’ response, “because of your unbelief; for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.” (Matthew 17:20)

In Mark 6, Jesus went to Nazareth to minister to his own countrymen, but “he could there do no mighty work…and he marvelled because of their unbelief” (Mark 6:5, 6)

In chapter 9 of Mark, a father comes to Jesus to heal his son. Jesus’ response to the father, “If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” (Mark 9:23, 24)

Belief

Abraham did not struggle with unbelief. On the contrary, he was “fully persuaded”, this is a phrase in Greek meaning:

- full, i.e. filled up (as opposed to empty); a surface, covered in every part; the soul, thoroughly permeated with; full, i.e. complete; lacking nothing; to bear constantly, wear; of clothing, garments, armour (blueletterbible.org)

Abraham had no doubts. His was heart was set. His mind was sure. God was able to perform what He had promised. No doubt about it. Romans 4:21, “And being fully persuaded, that what he had promised, he was able also to perform.”

God saw Abraham’s belief, and counted him righteous. King James uses the word “imputed”, meaning: to reckon, count, compute, calculate, count over; metaphor - to pass to one’s account; equivalent to something.

Abraham’s Faith = Righteousness

Romans 4:22-25

“And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; but for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.”

God’s Promise to Abraham

God kept His promise, though Sarah laughed, she too “judged him faithful who had promised.” (Hebrews 11:11) And so, Isaac was born, as recorded in Genesis 21:1-8.

“And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him. And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him. And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me. And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? For I have born him a son in his old age. And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned.”

Hebrews 11:12 records God’s promise to Abraham, “Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable.”

Lord, I believe, help Thou my unbelief!

Hard Pressed?

“…tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope: and hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.” Romans 5:3-5

- tribulation: from the Greek word meaning, “to press (as grapes), press hard upon” (blueletterbible.org)

- patience: “steadfastness, constancy, endurance” (blueletterbible.org)

- experience: “a proof, a specimen of tried worth” (blueletterbible.org) from the Greek word meaning, “accepted, particularly of coins and money” (blueletterbible.org)

“In the ancient world there was no banking system as we know it today, and no paper money. All money was made from metal, heated until liquid, poured into moulds and allowed to cool. When the coins were cooled, it was necessary to smooth off the uneven edges. The coins were comparatively soft, and of course many people shaved them closely. In one century, more than eighty laws were passed in Athens to stop the practice of whittling down the coins then in circulation. But some money-changers were men of integrity, who would accept no counterfeit money; they were men of honour who put only genuine, full-weight money into circulation. Such men were called dokimos, and this word is used here for the Christian as he is to be seen by the world.” (Donald Grey Barnhouse, Romans: God’s Glory, p. 18.)

- hope: “to anticipate, usually with pleasure”

Grape, Grape Joy by Amy Grant

I am a small and lonely grape,

Clutching to the vine,

Waiting for the day when I’ll become my Savior’s wine!

Oh, wouldn’t French cuisine just yearn it,

I’ve eternity to ferment,

But knowing me I’d end up rippled

In a cellar of Cheblis.

Are you a small and lonely grape

Clutching to the vine,

Waiting for the day when you’ll become your Savior’s wine?

Don’t give up hope ye heavy laden,

You don’t want to be a raisin;

There’s a grape grape joy in Jesus,

In the vineyard of the Lord.

 

7 Realities of Experiencing God

(From Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby)

1. God is always working around you (Exodus 2:23-25)

“And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of bondage. And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God had respect unto them.”

2. God pursues a continuing personal love relationship with you that is real and personal (Exodus 3:1)

“Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.”

3. God invites you to be come involved with Him in His work (Exodus 3:8, 10)

“And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites…Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring fouth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.”

4. God speaks by the Holy Spirit through the Bible, prayer, circumstances and the church to reveal Himself, His purposes and His ways (Exodus 3:2-

“And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. And Moses, said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.”

5. God’s invitation for you to work with Him always leads you to a crisis of belief that requires faith and action (Exodus 3:11, 13; 4:1, 10, 13)

“And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?…And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?…And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, The LORD hath not appeared unto thee…And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue…And he said, O my Lord, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send.”

6. You must make major adjustments in your life to join God in what He is doing (Exodus 4:19-20)

“And the LORD said unto Moses in Midian, Go, return into Egypt: for all the men are dead which sought thy life. And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of God in his hand.”

7. You come to know God by experience as you obey Him and He accomplishes His work through you (Exodus 6:1-

“Then the LORD said unto Moses, Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh: for with a strong hand shall he let them go, and with a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land. And God spake unto Moses and said unto him, I am the LORD: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them. And I have also established my covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, wherein they were strangers. And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage; and I have remembered my covenant. Wherefore say unto the children of Israel, I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments: And I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God: and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God, which bringeth you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. And I will bring you in unto the land, concerning the which I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; and I will give it you for an heritage: I am the LORD.”

Pretty…Pretty…Posie

This beautiful flowering bush is in my front yard…thought I’d share it with you. Enjoy!

 

Mountain vs. Valley

 

“I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.” Psalm 121:1

I know my Heavenly Father cares for me. Even when circumstances cause me to question if He is aware of what is happening in my life. Is He paying attention? Is He interested? Where is He?

He has promised never to leave me nor forsake me. He is always present, going ahead, encompassing me, giving His angels charge over me. Well aware of my needs. Seeing the big picture. Not surprised by anything that may come my way.

Though, I get surprised! And impatient…planning how to solve what problem may be at hand…and presenting my ideas to Him like He needs my counsel.

No. He doesn’t need my counsel. Yes. I may come boldly before the throne of grace to ask anything, to speak with my God. He delights in this close relationship. He longs for us to pour our hearts out before Him.

He is able…more than able to meet what obstacle I may face today. He will provide and guide, as I look to Him. He loves me so!

 

Tutorial: Jean to Skirt

 

Needed: one pair of old jeans, scissors, seam ripper, bar of soap, ruler, straight pins, sewing machine, thread, or needle & thread to sew by hand (which I did).

Use seam ripper to open up pant leg seams.

If you have no seam ripper, use scissors, I did.

Stop at bottom of zipper.

On the backside, stop at the yoke.

Jeans should look like this when seams are open at both sides:

Next, on front side, overlap denim below zipper, pin:

Do the same to the backside, below the yoke:

Do not sew yet.

Try on the garment so that you can mark the desired length of the skirt. I like to use soap to mark with.

Cut along marked line for desired length.

Sew where pinned.

Once sewn, should look like this:

Pin piece of cut off pant leg to opening:

Sew where pinned.

Hem.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

His Eye Is On The Sparrow

Mom shared some encouragement with me today that is too good not to share with you! Thanks, Mom! This poem was one my Grandmother used to say:

The Robin and the Sparrow

Said the robin to the sparrow,
“I should really like to know,
Why these anxious human beings
Rush about and worry so.”

Said the sparrow to the robin,
“Friend I think that it must be,
That they have no Heavenly Father,
Such as cares for you and me.”

“Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not ye therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.” Matthew 10:29-31

A few thoughts from Matthew Henry’s Commentary:

- Our Heavenly Father cares for all creation, “even the least, and least considerable, to the sparrows.”

- Sparrows “are of so small account, that one of them is not valued; there must go two to be worth a farthing (nay, you shall have five for a halfpenny, Lu. 12:6), and yet they are not shut out of the divine care”

- One of them shall not fall to the ground without your Father: “That is…they do not light on the ground for food, to pick up a grain of corn, but your heavenly Father, by his providence, laid it ready for them…Now he that feeds the sparrows, will not starve the saints.”

- Sparrows do not ” fall to the ground by death, either a natural or a violent death, without the notice of God: though they are so small a part of the creation, yet even their death comes within the notice of the divine providence.”

- Our Heavenly Father, “who has such an eye to the sparrows, because they are his creatures, much more will have an eye to you, who are his children.”

 

The words to this song were not inspired by someone who always lived on the sunny side of life. Mrs. Civilla D. Martin (1866-194 wrote the lyrics in 1905 after she and her husband visited friends by the name of Mr. and Mrs. Doolittle in Elmira, New York. These were true saints; Mrs. Doolittle had been bedridden for nearly twenty years, and her husband was an incurable cripple who had to propel himself to and from his business in a wheel chair. Dr. and Mrs. Martin noticed that despite their afflictions, the Doolittles lived happy Christian lives, bringing inspiration and comfort to all who knew them. One day while with the Doolittles, Dr. Martin commented to his wife about their bright hopefulness, so they asked them for the secret of it. Mrs. Doolittle’s reply was simple: “His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.” The beauty of this simple expression of boundless faith gripped the hearts and fired the imagination of Dr. Martin and his wife. The hymn “His Eye Is on the Sparrow” was the outcome of that experience - the poem was written that very night and sent the next day to Charles Gabriel who put the words to music.

Crooked Places

“Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain.” Isaiah 40:4

“And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them.” Isaiah 42:16

“I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight…….” Isaiah 45:2

Facing a crooked place today? I am.

Looking for help? I am.

Needing a bit of encouragement? I am.

Remember what Jesus said? I AM

“Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me…Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:1, 6

Sunday Psalms

 

Psalm 27:4

“One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.”

Psalm 84:10

“For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.”

Psalm 73:28

“But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.”

 

Lactose Free Recipes Search

Help! I’m looking for lactose free recipes of all kinds. I have found a few on-line, but would love to find some tried and true recipes.

It would also be helpful to hear from others adjusting to a lactose-free diet. My husband has found out that he needs to do this. I want to make this adjustment as easy as possible for him.

I love to bake and cook, but so many yummy meals call for milk somewhere in the recipes. He also loves ice cream…poor Love. Tips, suggestions, recipes, encouragement…all heartily accepted!

Thank you!